House

GOP rep: ‘Terrible move’ for Trump to pardon himself

Rep. Will Hurd (R-Texas) said Sunday it would be a “terrible” political move for President Trump to pardon himself.

“I think that would be a terrible move. I think people would erupt. I think even thinking about trying to fire Mueller is a bad move politically,” Hurd told CBS News’s “Face the Nation,” referring to special counsel Robert Mueller.

{mosads}“So I hope we don’t have to get to that point. And it’s hard to predict what would happen, but that would create outrage on both sides of the political aisle.”

The comments from Hurd, who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, come after Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani said the president “probably” has the power to pardon himself, but doing so would be politically difficult.

“I think the political ramifications of that would be tough,” Giuliani told ABC’s “This Week.”

“Pardoning other people is one thing, pardoning yourself is another.”

Hurd in his Sunday show interview also suggested Trump should testify in the special counsel’s Russia probe if he is not trying to cover up any actions. 

“If you don’t have anything to hide, why wouldn’t you testify?” Hurd asked on CBS. “Because I think that would help close this investigation quicker.”